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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. clip — to cut
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wake — a trail
  7. craft — boats
  8. clip — for paper
  9. chip — for betting
  10. bark — to shout
  11. craft — a skill
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. clip — a video
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. dip — to sink

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com